I became a girl group idol for my sister.

"Warring States Girls, so this represents the graduate students' declaration: to launch an attack on their high and mighty seniors?"

"That guy, Tenbei, is definitely stirring things up. He's always been good at it!"

"The fact that the graduate students are releasing their new CD single so publicly, and that their intentions are directly aimed at the official members, or even the selection group, will definitely cause a huge conflict, and may even lead to a fight between different fan groups!! The graduate students still have relatively few fans, so they will inevitably be suppressed at first, but the continued suppression will eventually lead to an explosion! And ultimately, the most intense explosion!"

"I see it, I see it! A new storm is forming and about to sweep across the world!"

The group of people on stage were all shocked, and Miyamoto Sei was also staring wide-eyed. He never expected that Amagai Risa would say it so directly. If his name hadn't been left unsaid, he estimated that he would have offended all the seniors of SKR.

And to that fan below who's analyzing things so logically, are you some kind of reclusive sage? Your comments sound like those of a wise man in some anime, making prophecies and guiding the protagonist.

……

[Big news! The team's graduate students are releasing their own CD single, and this song, titled "Sengoku Girls," is exclusively for them. It's said to represent the idea that even graduate students are challenging their seniors in the regular groups, and even those in the selection groups!]

[A genko (underdog) overthrowing his superior, indeed! No wonder she's called the "Warring States Girl," this is so typical of the Warring States period!]

[So who do you think is the Demon King? I think it's Nana!]

[The Demon King? That's bad luck! Doesn't it foreshadow a repeat of the Honnoji Incident?]

[If the Honnoji Incident hadn't happened, wouldn't the Demon King himself be the most powerful being, and wouldn't the strongest figures around him, whether it's the monkey or the tanuki, continue to follow him?]

[If you put it that way, it suddenly feels like you're talking about some of the most prominent graduate students right now: Miyamoto Nana, Komatsu Mika, Nagayasu Miyu, and others. These people started from very small factions and have grown into a huge threat to the other daimyo!]

[The Warring States period! The Warring States period! War is about to break out!]

Online, the surprise of this SKR release has been widely discussed, with many believing that it will inevitably cause a great deal of conflict, just like the Warring States period, stirring up a bloody storm.

Meanwhile, Miyamoto Sei, who had become part of this topic, was learning a new piece of music.

The demo track for "Sengoku Girls" has arrived. As graduate students, they not only need to complete their regular assignments, but also learn the new single on top of that. They also need to avoid having a negative impact on each other. If they can't manage to do both, then they are not qualified idols.

This is something everyone is well aware of. After all, the senior members who are also official members are performing in theaters while also participating in various activities, such as variety shows, radio programs, and even acting.

If you're already too busy just because you added one more CD single recording, what right do you have to say you want to become a full member?

The next few days were very busy. Fortunately, the performance had not yet changed, so there was no need to learn new dances and music. I could use all my practice time to train for the single. Otherwise, the busyness would probably have increased several times over.

Time passed by, and finally December 11th arrived.

Yesterday and today were both handshake events, but today the graduate students were also required to attend. The explanation was that they could take advantage of the formal group's appearance to boost their own popularity and get used to the atmosphere of the handshake event.

Miyamoto was assigned to Team R's Hikaru Watanabe as a full member, and Watanabe reacted extremely enthusiastically to being paired with Miyamoto.

"Sister Qina!"

Watanabe Hikaru shouted this and rushed over to hug Miyamoto Nana, rubbing her little face against his belly.

"Hikaru, Hikaru-chan, the fans are coming!"

This incredibly intimate contact made Miyamoto's heart race, and he almost called him "Hikaru-senpai" (a term of endearment for a senior). However, he reacted quickly and immediately used the name the other person had asked him to use.

"Oh, right, let me check if there's anything wrong with my bangs first."

Watanabe Hikaru released her hand and then tidied her neat bangs. Seeing her serious expression, Miyamoto couldn't help but wonder if she was unusually obsessed with her bangs, because the way she took out the pocket mirror was all too practiced.

It is said that in some places, Watanabe Hikaru's bangs are called "iron bangs" to reflect the unchanging nature of this special hairstyle.

While fixing his bangs, Watanabe Hikaru looked at Miyamoto Sei.

"Sister Nana, those things Teacher Tenbei said, it must have been Sister Nana who said them, right?"

"Huh? Why do you say that?" Miyamoto looked at Watanabe Hikaru with some surprise, not expecting that the other party would guess it so easily.

"Hehe, because Hikari-chan is very smart!" Watanabe Hikari chuckled. "I heard that Amagai-sensei has been muttering things like 'Her idea is pretty good' to herself the other day, so I just guessed that, and judging from Nana-neechan's reaction, it's true!"

Risa Amagai, are you someone who'll die if you don't talk to yourself?!

Miyamoto Sei secretly rolled his eyes.

"And among the graduate students, only Nana-neechan would dare to say something like that. No one else seems to have the guts. Even Komatsu-san is the kind of person who keeps her thoughts to herself."

That means she can pretend. Although she's a total tsundere, she can still put on an act.

Miyamoto thought to himself for a moment, then smiled and directly admitted the other party's guess.

"That's right, I said it. But the original purpose was to give Professor Tenbei, who was stuck in a creative block, some inspiration. After all, this is for our graduate students' new song, and I don't want any other problems to arise from this opportunity."

"Challenge the selection group, hehe, that means I'm also Nana-neechan's opponent now!" Watanabe Hikaru laughed, not at all angry, but even quite happy: "Although I really like Nana-neechan, Hikaru-chan will not admit defeat!"

“Of course, this kind of competition should be won based on real strength!” Miyamoto Seya nodded: “I wouldn’t be happy if you went easy on me!”

As they spoke, fans began to enter, forming a long queue as they headed towards their idols.

Watanabe Hikaru's side naturally also had quite a few people, or rather, a very large number of people.

Miyamoto looked around at other places.

The other graduate students are grouped with the other full members, and if they're lucky, some fans might be willing to give them a little face.

"Hikari-chan, I'll always support you. You have to stay cute forever!"

The man who came up to Watanabe Hikaru excitedly grasped her hand, his words trembling with nervousness. Watanabe Hikaru smiled, her smile both lovely and sincere.

"Thank you, I will continue to be cute!"

Ten seconds is naturally a very short time; the person would need to leave soon, and Miyamoto Seiya smiled and extended his hand.

"Hello there!"

He smiled and greeted the other person, who then ignored him and walked right past him.

This guy!

Slightly annoyed at being completely ignored, Miyamoto looked at the person's back and couldn't help but laugh when he saw that the other person was still very excited and hadn't recovered from the excitement.

Well, whatever. It's understandable that you'd be so excited to be in contact with your favorite idol that you wouldn't care about anyone else.

Moreover, these people are here to see their favorite idols. The graduate students' seats were added at the last minute for this handshake event, so it's natural that they would ignore them.

Perhaps in the eyes of these fans, these suddenly appearing graduate students are parasites trying to steal the popularity of their favorite idols.

Miyamoto probably thinks that there are quite a few people who would think that way.

Looking around at the other places, he saw that the other graduate students were facing similar problems, and many of them looked quite grim. This situation made Miyamoto Sei secretly worried.

It's okay if no one shakes your hand, but you absolutely cannot show such an unpleasant expression. In fact, you could say that a blank expression is better than an unpleasant one.

But I can't leave here for the time being, so how can I tell others?

A cell phone?

Taking out his phone while shaking hands with fans is not a good thing...

So it seems we can only discuss this during our break time...

Miyamoto sighed inwardly, then put on a smile again.

Handshake events are no different from regular performances. Regular performances involve interacting with fans, and handshake events also involve interacting with fans. So even if each fan only has 10 seconds, it's still a performance!

Miyamoto thought to herself, her face bearing the smile of an idol.

"Thank you for supporting SKR!"

"Thank you!"

"Please continue to support your senior in the future!"

Since no one supports him, he might as well let them support Watanabe Hikaru even more, since those in this line were already Watanabe Hikaru's fans.

Are you also a fan of Hikari-chan?

This statement had an effect; after shaking hands with Watanabe Hikaru, a fan looked at Miyamoto Sei in surprise.

"Nana, I remember you, you were Hikaru's substitute!"

“Yes, it really touched me that you remembered me!” Miyamoto said, looking at Watanabe Hikaru: “Hikaru-chan is very kind to me and to the other graduate students. I really like Hikaru-chan!”

Then, he made this declaration, which was absolutely not a lie. He was deeply moved by Watanabe Hikaru's initial actions in trying to help them, so his affection for that person was genuine.

She is definitely a great senior!

"I'm so happy that you said that, Sister Qina!"

Watanabe Hikaru, covering her cheeks with both hands, made the group of people still in line stare in disbelief.

As expected of a mainstream idol, she's always in an adorable state and is a total heartthrob.

"Wow! Hikari-chan is so cute!"

The otaku roared in fury!

Perhaps because of this interaction, many fans were finally willing to shake hands with Miyamoto Sei later on.

Although it's only a second or two, it's still a time that has to be taken out of 10 seconds.

"Thanks for your support!"

Thank you for your support!

"I will definitely continue to work hard!"

"Will I be able to support Hikari-chan? I'll do my best to achieve that goal!" Giving SKR a new pillar, that would be enough to support Hikari-chan, right...?

Miyamoto Sei smiled and looked the other person in the eye with each expression of gratitude, her smile and responses always sincere.

Finally, after seeing off about a hundred fans, a woman who looked to be in her thirties and appeared somewhat haggard appeared.